


In Another Life

by skylinesunflowers



Category: The Office (US)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, Season/Series 06
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:41:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26903788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skylinesunflowers/pseuds/skylinesunflowers
Summary: Ryan’s stupid frustrated and this close to punching a hole in the wall of his damn closet-office. Meredith is a good friend.
Relationships: Meredith Palmer & Ryan Howard
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	In Another Life

**Author's Note:**

> I wasn’t gonna sleep anyways. Takes place sometime in Season 6. Ryan’s already begun working on WUPHF.

Ryan is at his wit’s end back here in Scranton. The place where it all began. The Rise and Fall of Ryan Howard, written by his mother. His Mother? His Mother.

He’s through with these Scrantonian morons, who call him ‘Fire Guy’ and try to one-up him. He’s done with Jim and Pam, lovesick idiots who are always trying to knock him down a couple pegs. All he has here is Kelly. Kelly Kapoor. Literally Kelly. He could honestly have nothing, and it would be more than he has now.

She’s a fairytale princess on steroids, shallow, vain (though for good reason), and inexplicably colorful. Ryan doesn’t want to think of himself as her prince, but it’s what comes to mind anyways.

He’s wedged against the door, shaking violently, and Ryan can feel himself sweating hard. At times like this, he misses his peak, when coke was a second away. He doesn’t drink in Scranton, and he doesn’t go to the cheap dealers his old friends from school use.

Ryan wishes he had some on him right now. He thinks he quite honestly might cry. He can’t deal with this right now. Ryan’s a failure. He’s failing at relationships, he’s failing at his job, and now he’s failing at WUPHF.

The door to his closet-office flies open, and Ryan is terrified for a moment. Even he can swallow his pride and admit it. It nearly smacks him, and he edges away quickly. Not at the speed of light. He’s not a hyperbole person.

For a second, he almost decides against fighting off whoever it is. He’ll let the words impale him and pretend like it doesn’t hurt. Jim Halpert’s words have become his drug recently, and he hangs onto every cruel piece of shit that leaves his lips.

Then, he smells whiskey in the air, and he knows it’s Meredith. Nobody else ever shows up to work this drunk. Not even Pam and Jim, that one time they came back all stupid.

She frowns at him and makes a clumsy move to close the door. “Ocupado?”

“Get out,” he hisses. Ryan feels like a caged animal, too feral to be out in the world.

“Move.” Then Meredith nudges him to the side and sinks to the floor besides Ryan. She puts her head on his shoulder. What the fuck?

“Meredith,” Ryan says in a measured tone, “I’d appreciate it if you could get out of my personal space.”

“You’re always so sad,” Meredith says with a hint of regret. “You shouldn’t be this sad.”

Ryan bristles. “I’m not _sad_. Fuck off.”

Meredith gives an unusually high-pitched giggle. She’s much farther gone than usual, apparently.

“You’re a good guy, kid,” she slurs. “Reminds me of my son. He’s a good kid, too.”

Ryan swallows sharply. He hasn’t accounted for how the parental thing affects him. His mom has always been his only supporter. When Dad picked up and left, after boyfriend after boyfriend, Mom was still there in the end.

“Meredith,” he says quietly, “how do you pick up and move on?”

“Embrace it,” Meredith says. It’s uncomfortable being stuck in this too-small closet with yet another person. “Take it into stride.”

And the next time Pam uses a drug metaphor, he does. Meredith almost looks proud.

Ryan decides that, just maybe, he can do this. He breathes a little easier when it’s over.


End file.
